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August 06, 2014Contact: Ryan Lothrop, (360) 902-2808

Chinook fishery to close Thursdayin Marine Area 10 near Seattle

OLYMPIA – The recreational chinook salmon fishery in Marine Area 10 (Seattle/Bremerton) will close at the end of the day Thursday, Aug. 7, when fishery managers expect the catch quota to be met.

Chinook retention will remain open at Sinclair Inlet and five fishing piers within the marine area, where anglers can continue to catch chinook as part of their daily limit. The five piers include Elliot Bay Fishing Pier at Terminal 86, Seacrest Pier, Waterman Pier, Bremerton Boardwalk and Illahee State Park Pier.

There and elsewhere in Marine Area 10, anglers can continue catching coho under limits described in the state sport fishing rules pamphlet available online at http://wdfw.wa.gov/fishing/regulations/.

Catch rates for the area have increased since Aug. 1, pushing the fishery toward the catch quota of 1,112 legal-size chinook, said Ryan Lothrop, Puget Sound recreational salmon manager for the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife.

“Anglers have done much better this last week,” Lothrop said. “We have enough chinook available to continue the fishery until the end of Thursday, when we anticipate the fishery will reach the guideline.”

Starting Friday, all chinook caught in Marine Area 10 will need to be released back into Puget Sound.

Anyone still hoping to hook a chinook in nearby waters can head to Marine Area 9 (Admiralty Inlet), which is expected to remain open for chinook fishing though Aug. 15, Lothrop said. Anglers should check regulations for the area before heading out.

Lothrop noted that Shilshole Bay remains closed through Aug. 31 to all salmon fishing southeast from Meadow Point West Point. Elliott Bay also remains closed to fishing, except in the specified Elliott Bay Fishery described in the fishing rules pamphlet.